Azerbaijan edges Thailand 3-2 in FIVB World GP

The Thai team did not win a match in Hong Kong, losing their first two games to the highly ranked Chinese and Russian teams and their final game to Azerbaijan.

The Thai team's best performance at the meet was against Azerbaijan on Sunday, with their strong defence and great attacking play earning them the first two sets 25-20 25-22.

But the fired-up Azerbaijanis, led by Natalya Mammadova who scored a match-high 32 points, stormed back to take the remaining three sets 25-19 25-20 16-14 and the match.

Azerbaijan coach Faig Garyev praised the Thai team, saying they came from nowhere to beat his team in the first two sets.

"We gained experience after we played Thailand," he said. "They are one of the strong teams in this year's World Grand Prix.

"I hope my girls will do a better job when we meet Thailand again in the next leg in Taiwan."

The unbeaten Chinese team won the Hong Kong leg of the World Grand Prix, followed by Russia. Azerbaijan finished third, with Thailand fourth.

The Thai and Azerbaijan teams head to Taiwan today for the second leg of the four-week tournament. In Taiwan both teams will face world champions Italy and three-time Olympic champions Cuba.

The Russian team will go to South Korea to compete in the second leg against Poland, Japan and South Korea, with the Chinese team flying to Macau to face the Dominican Republic, the US and defending two-time World Grand Prix champions Brazil.

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